Posts Tagged ‘Lorac’

We’ve all heard about buyer’s regret; we may have even experienced it once or twice (or more times). What surprised me recently is that it’s possible to regret not buying. I suppose it shouldn’t really be that surprising. After all, this is what fuels the idea of limited edition releases (I’m looking at you, MAC).

This post is to let you know that I am officially regretting not purchasing a couple of limited edition items, and now they are, well, no longer available.

LORAC Mega Pro

Image credits: Lorac Cosmetics

I mentioned to Liz that I wasn’t too thrilled when I saw Temptalia‘s take on the Mega Pro. Temptalia didn’t seem too impressed, especially comparing to the original Pro and Pro2. For some reason I put a lot of value in her recommendation, so I scoffed and did not place an order. It made sense, I thought, since I don’t even own either of the original Pros yet.

About two weeks later I saw some bloggers start posting looks using the Mega Pro. Cue that sinking feeling in the stomach. It looks and applies much better than the review stated. I should have gotten it since it has 32 shades for $59, making it the single palette I will probably have been using forever.

Lesson learned: Do read more reviews other than Temptalia. Third/fourth opinion and all that.

NARS Audacious Lipstick in Angela

Image credits: Makeup and Beauty Blog

The NARS Audacious range is all the rage even until today. I didn’t immediately jump on the bandwagon primarily because the price is quite steep. Php1650 for a single lipstick seemed a bit too much, even if it’s quite possibly one of the best formulas released. The packaging is also very nice, and the shade Angela seemed like a really safe bet.

I even got to swatch it! I found it at the NARS counter at Glorietta, but I didn’t have the moolah then to purchase it. And besides, I was again reminded that it costs Php1650, so I dithered and said I’ll just return for it maybe the week after. From the lesson learned with the Mega Pro, I took to the internet and was comforted by various positive reviews of Angela. My husband even okayed it! I went immediately back and yep, you guessed it. Sold out. Rushed to the one other branch in my travel range (Shangri-la) and yep, still sold out. Alas, it was not meant to be.

Lesson learned: I’m not sure what the lesson learned here. Should I have bought it, knowing that 1. it was out of my budget to be sure and 2. it would have been an impulse buy?

Just to try something new, let me show you some of my wishlists. The idea is to write out the reasons why I want to get the things on my wishlists, and the reasons why I shouldn’t get them. In this way, I can judge whether or not it makes sense to buy them with the limited money I have and at the same time, avoid buying stuff that are not on these lists.

This first edition is my eyeshadow palette wishlist. My primary factor in choosing all of these is that it has to be a neutral palette, and as much as possible a good percentage of them consists of matte shadows.

Why I Want It: Lorac is known to have really good quality shadows, and most reviews on this palette confirms this. It has a great range of shades, and has both matte and shimmer shadows. It has sixteen shades! If you look at the price per shadow (Php137-166/shadow) it looks to be a ridiculously good deal. It also comes with a small tube of primer! Finally, Lorac is also cruelty-free.

Why I Shouldn’t Buy It: It’s the most expensive item on my wish list, and it will take a lot of budgeting to buy this. It’s not available locally and might be hard to find. There is a big variation in the prices, as low as Php2200 and as expensive as Php2650. In addition, it has no applicator included and the case is made of hard cardboard (as opposed to plastic). This combination makes it a little hard to be portable.

Why I Want It: Naked Basics is usually on the list of many bloggers’ top eyeshadow palettes. It’s a pretty handy palette consisting of six shadows (neutral of course), and they’re all matte. It’s a great starting point for a makeup beginner like me, and on the whole it’s a reasonably priced palette too. As a bonus, Urban Decay is cruelty-free.

Why I Shouldn’t Buy It: The shade variation is a little meh. Three of the six are highlight shades and will pretty much look the same on the lid. It’s also a little hard to find, and there is a big variation in prices across different online stores. I’ve seen it as low as Php1300 and as high as Php1800.

Why I Want It: I’ve always wanted to get Sleek Makeup since it reflects the name of my blog, and I did hear a lot of good things about the brand. An eyeshadow palette from them would be a great start, and it’s not really that expensive either. For Php650 you get ten neutral (mostly) matte shadows which is such a great deal! I like how the packaging looks as well.

Why I Shouldn’t Buy It: Some reviews say that the lighter shades aren’t very good. Sleek is also not cruelty-free, which is a big factor to me.

Why I Want It: San San is a local brand that makes excellent makeup and nail polish, and I’ve always liked supporting local brands. They came out with awesomely cheap single shadows (which is definitely not a palette, but I’ll add this here anyway) at Php50 per shadow. I am interested in the five matte neutrals they have, and I’m counting them like a palette. HBC, which sells the brand, is located in a lot of places so this is pretty accessible.

Why I Shouldn’t Buy It: It is not a palette, and I can imagine how messy it is to work with single shadows. It can be fixed with an empty palette like Wild Peach but it would increase the price of the whole thing dramatically. Reviews also say that some of the shades in this line aren’t very good and need a primer. I also have no idea if San San is cruelty-free.

Verdict: After writing this all out, it seems to me that I should go and invest in the Lorac Pro Palette if I have the cash for it. The cases against it are not that big a deal (I have eyeshadow brushes, and I don’t need it to be portable). Otherwise, I can start with the San San Singles if I am in a hurry (which I am really not, since I do own a Nichido palette and two Ellefar palettes that are more or less neutral).

Have you tried/owned any of these? Which would you recommend/not recommend and why, or would you rather recommend something else?